TENEBRIS ~ Young Justice

22 ~ It'll Only Get Worse From Here

The ship was even more intimidating from the inside. 

It was dark and cold, incredibly uninviting, and I absentmindedly drew my arms around myself as I peered up at the endless expanse of unlit pathways above. 

My attention was drawn to Nightwing upon hearing his thundering footsteps against the metal floors, and I breathed out a light gasp at the sight of Blue Beetle cowering against the wall only a few meters away. 

At least Jaime was alright. 

"Alright, what happened? What happened to the rest of my team?" Nightwing snapped on approach, pausing in front of the teen. Blue Beetle's face fell as he lowered his head to avoid looking Nightwing in the eye. 

"It's all my fault." 

"That assessment is inaccurate," Green Beetle stepped in, placing a hand on Blue Beetle's shoulder. Nightwing didn't look too convinced, and to be honest, neither was I. With Blue Beetle's recent behavior with the media and his obnoxious attitude, I couldn't shake the feeling that something else had happened that we weren't aware of just yet. 

"Just tell him what you told us," Captain Atom muttered, gesturing toward Nightwing. Blue Beetle first glanced at the man before looking past Nightwing to me. I took that as my cue to join the group, and the tension in Blue Beetle's shoulders visibly minimized. Nightwing wasn't as generous as I was, instead folding his arms over his chest as he glared down at the younger. If I wasn't so panicked, I probably would have reacted the same way. 

"W-We won," Blue Beetle stuttered, finally lifting his head to look Nightwing in the eye. "We were all here in this bay, a-and Wondergirl had Mongul hogtied. Then, suddenly, a boom tube opened up right beneath our feet!" The look on Nightwing's face morphed with suspicion, and he shot a split-second glance to Captain Atom. "I-I flew up and out! It was instinct, you know? Before I could do anything else, the boom tube closed, and the others were...gone." 

My stomach sank. A boom tube meant that they could have been transported absolutely anywhere. They really were gone. 

No.

Nightwing huffed before raising his arm into his eyeline. He then used the tech in his glove to pull up a holographic screen, which displayed figures for the boom tube energy levels that were practically skyrocketing in this place. 

"I'm definitely reading traces of boom tube activity," he murmured, eyes fixated on the screen. 

I guess Blue Beetle was right. 

"We think Mongul may have opened the boom tube as a means of escape, gaining the Team as captives in the bargain," Captain Atom murmured. "The Team...and worse." 

"Worse?" I whispered. 

"Impulse had the crystal key," Blue Beetle added, sighing. 

"So not only did the entire Team disappear to God knows where, but whoever kidnapped them has the means to take over and control this death machine?" I muttered, my mouth falling open in disbelief. Nightwing shuffled in place beside me, and Blue Beetle let out another heavy sigh. "And we don't have any idea as to who was responsible?" 

"Like I said," Captain Atom chimed, "Mongul may have--" 

I shook my head. "With all due respect, sir, that doesn't make any sense. If Mongul was really incapacitated like Blue said, there's no way he would have been able to open the boom tube. What's more, all power on the ship was taken out when Bumblebee shocked him!" 

"He could have had a Mother Box, or a Father Box, or something," Blue Beetle muttered quietly. I shifted my attention to him. 

"Did he?" When Blue Beetle didn't reply, I raked a hand through my hair before looking back to Captain Atom. "I... I'm sorry, it just doesn't make any sense. I'm still trying to wrap my head around this..."